2001. I have trouble getting the tongue off the hitch. It took us almost an hour today. We tried everything from moving forward to moving back an inch or 2. Prior owner replaced the tongue bout a year1/2 ago. Is there something I'm missing? All I have had is V/M trailers in the past. Thanks in advance!!!

mikeg205

08-26-2012, 08:28 PM

was it hard to lock in the ball when you attached? The only thing now is - unlock tongue ( i am sure you did this)....crank up the jack.... get a piece of 2x4 and a big hammer. IMO or .02

barefoot

08-26-2012, 08:31 PM

2'' ball and 1 7/8'' tongue?

Redstorm

08-26-2012, 08:45 PM

Have no problem hookin up and lockin in. 2" ball. The only thing i can think of is the boat/trailer is backed into garage, level, and the driveway has a very slight angle down.

mikeg205

08-26-2012, 08:50 PM

mine garage and driveway is the same way... have no problems detaching... or is yours really steep - can you post a picture?

Redstorm

08-26-2012, 08:54 PM

2'' ball and 1 7/8'' tongue?
Did mastercraft ever use 1 7/8" tongue on their trailers? PO stated 2" and I assumed 2" for the size and weight.

Redstorm

08-26-2012, 09:07 PM

mine garage and driveway is the same way... have no problems detaching... or is yours really steep - can you post a picture?
Come to think of it, it mostly happens in my driveway but then again this is where I only detach most of the time. The driveway is really not that steep but we have the new tahoe and that stock hitch is soo damn high I need a 6-8 " drop. Right now I have a 4" drop.. But could this be the problem? I will try to get some pics.

ricford

08-26-2012, 09:12 PM

The incline as well as the height of the hitch is probably what the problem is. Try some wd40 before hooking it up next time.

Redstorm

08-26-2012, 09:27 PM

The incline as well as the height of the hitch is probably what the problem is. Try some wd40 before hooking it up next time.

I know some use grease on the ball, i never have. I know this is more for the swing. I did spray wd40 while tryin to get it off. Might have worked some. It's just soo frustrating getting home from a long weekend and then this. U just wanna go inside and lay down. Came close to havin a tantrum and beatn it with a hammer. Hard but kept my cool! It must be the height of the hitch and the slight angle of the driveway.

Thanks for all the quick responses!!

skijwr

08-26-2012, 11:52 PM

Red, Let me ask a dumb question, we assume you are putting a chock or something in front of the trailer wheels right ? if not, then chock the trailer wheels, get back in truck and put the truck in Neutral, let truck ease down the driveway just a hair, like one inch or less. Put truck back in Park & park brake, then try to release hitch. This may release any binding on the ball / coupler.

The other issue, a quick fix for the height issue, take a large block of wood, we use two pieces of short 2x8 boards nailed together. Place these under the tongue jack swivel wheel, then crank jack up. This will give you the extra height. Just don't let the swivel wheel roll off the blocks !

Good luck

curtish

08-27-2012, 01:07 AM

I know some use grease on the ball, i never have. I know this is more for the swing. I did spray wd40 while tryin to get it off. Might have worked some. It's just soo frustrating getting home from a long weekend and then this. U just wanna go inside and lay down. Came close to havin a tantrum and beatn it with a hammer. Hard but kept my cool! It must be the height of the hitch and the slight angle of the driveway.

Thanks for all the quick responses!!

Start using grease. Probably solve your problem.

JJMorris3

08-27-2012, 03:53 AM

Sounds like there is pressure. The wheel chuck will help if it relieves the pressure but it depends if u can get the truck just right. Ive had the problem. I release the hitch pin from the vehicle and leave the ball attached to the trailer and drive forward. Once you are removed from the truck it releases and comes right off... Hold it so it doesn't drop and break a toe!

JimN

08-27-2012, 08:04 AM

If it doesn't come out and you want/need to do something else, why not just remove the draw bar from the hitch? Then, turn it around so the garage door closes and you can get to it when you have time.

Of course, once the bar is removed, it will probably just fall out.

barefoot

08-27-2012, 08:11 AM

Did mastercraft ever use 1 7/8" tongue on their trailers? PO stated 2" and I assumed 2" for the size and weight.

no, MC never did for the reasons you just described. My thought was that if the PO put a new one on, it could be smaller. Just a thought....

I think some of the other responses are more accurate. I have a big work trailer that I have trouble pulling the coupler up on. When ever that happens, it's usually caused by a bind on the ball. I pull the truck forward and it usually comes loose.

wrobins1

08-27-2012, 09:02 AM

You could always trying unhitching in a level parking lot and see if it is any easier. Then you would at least know if it is the location.

kenps190

08-27-2012, 11:03 AM

Same thing happened to me the first time I backed into the garage on my new house. There was just enough differance in angles between the driveway and garage floor that the hitch would not release. By backing a little deeper in the garage resolved my issue.

mikeg205

08-27-2012, 10:33 PM

lol..had the same exact issue today...the fix was to roll a bit forward to take the pressure off the hitch.

Redstorm

08-28-2012, 01:53 AM

Thanks everyone!! I do believe it's the angle that is causing the hitch not to release. I've always used chuck/ block for the tires nd tried to release the pressure. I am going to work with it this weekend. I have an 8" drop hitch but it is slanted away from the bumper and the safety cables are not long enough. Do they make longer cables? Again thanks everyone!!!

maristardd

08-28-2012, 03:34 AM

With a new Tahoe, I'm 5.5" hitch drop. 6.5" was level at tongue but trailer clearly more weight on front tandem wheel and it bucked while driving. With 4" drop hitch, trailer dragged easily and with regard to your post, I couldn't get hitch to release if tow vehicle was on even slight grade compared to trailer - I was simply out of Jack height to release/clear the hitch ball. Currently greased up, I find that on 5.5" drop, trailer will pull hitch ball/Tahoe up vertically on its suspension about an inch or two before it releases, if there is any pressure / binding between hitch and trailer, but it will fall. So if your question is about ongoing issue, maybe put some plywood 'discs/spacers' under a trailer jack wheel stop to give jack more potential height to lift off ball, and grease the ball. If just one time issue, the place I topped out the jack w/o boat releasing was at the local boat dealer (and I broke jack topping it out trying to get it high enough, it wouldn't retract). Boat shop just had two guys lift trailer tongue off hitch.

mikeg205

08-28-2012, 07:28 AM

8" drop...yeah! let's see a picture of that towing beast! :D

milkmania

08-28-2012, 12:17 PM

It's just soo frustrating getting home from a long weekend and then this. U just wanna go inside and lay down. Came close to havin a tantrum and beatn it with a hammer. Hard but kept my cool!

duuuuuude.......
quit sweating the small stuff,!
pull the receiver hitch pin, jack up the trailer to release tongue pressure, drive the truck forward... leaving the hitch and ball on the boat trailer. (it MIGHT bind up a little if you're using a dropped hitchhttp://deephousepage.com/smilies/conf40.gif)

You ain't gonna need it till you hook up the boat again anyway!8p

pull the pin and throw the grenade.... not vice versa:uglyhamme

Redstorm

08-28-2012, 02:28 PM

I'm sorry.....6". We have the Z71. This one sits a tad higher than the reg. Tahoe. I was towing it with a HD Chevy 2500 4x4 before and that hitch was lower than the Tahoe. I'll take pics and post this week.

Redstorm

08-28-2012, 02:32 PM

duuuuuude.......
quit sweating the small stuff,!
pull the receiver hitch pin, jack up the trailer to release tongue pressure, drive the truck forward... leaving the hitch and ball on the boat trailer. (it MIGHT bind up a little if you're using a dropped hitchhttp://deephousepage.com/smilies/conf40.gif)

You ain't gonna need it till you hook up the boat again anyway!8p

pull the pin and throw the grenade.... not vice versa:uglyhamme

Yeah....done this in the past some time ago and I was sooo tired my brain locked and farted. I do remember It does unlock easier on flat and level.

lettmeknow

08-28-2012, 02:50 PM

What I do is also chock the front of the tires, get back intruck and pull slightly forward. This pulls the tension off the hitch. If that doesnt do the the trick , shake the heII out of it . Should release after that.

jgraham37128

08-28-2012, 02:59 PM

I bet it's pushed forward and causing it to bind. I park on a normal flat garage but most of the time I still have to push the boat back and it will release very easy. I just push the boat back instead of pulling the truck forward.

Legolamb

08-31-2012, 06:43 PM

I was having intermittent problems with my coupler, sometimes it would be difficult to open, sometimes difficult to close. I think something inside may have been tweaked. I ordered a new one from Pacific Trailers for $25, and it has been smooth and problem free ever since.

aswinter05

08-31-2012, 07:19 PM

Redstorm, We had an issue with getting the trailer off my truck too. Turned out that the solution was soooo simple. It was obviously a rookie mistake but you could be having this issue and not know it. I will try to explain it the best I can.

The secret to unlatching my boat was to lift up on the "tab" located on the tongue of the trailer WHILE cranking the trailer (i.e., elevating the nose of the trailer). You probably know your stuff and this might not be your issue, but I kid you not.... It took us two hours to figure it out.

Our family has had nearly 10 boats over the years and the MC trailer was the first one that had a tab which worked that specific way. Every other boat was just unhook and crank.

The tab wouldn't stay lifted unless I physically held it in place. It's kind of a long stretch for my arms (being a short man). Hope this helps..... if not..... best of luck!

jakethebt

08-31-2012, 09:46 PM

It sounds like you may have your problem solved. One more thing to consider is that you just backed your trailer into the garage and you may have some pressure on the surge brake actuator and master cylinder. This could also be applying pressure to the ball/hitch and making it more difficult to remove. After backing into the garage, allowing the truck to roll an inch or so forward may pull the tongue back out and remove this pressure. I think this is true especially if you have the electronic solenoid lockout. The solenoid allows the fluid to flow back into the res, but the actuator is still compressed and applying slight pressure forward.

bartman

09-06-2012, 08:04 AM

Had the same problem because we didn't use the lever to deactivate the surge brakes when backing up. Everything locked up until I pulled forward and released the brakes, used the release, and backed it up again.

It sounds like you may have your problem solved. One more thing to consider is that you just backed your trailer into the garage and you may have some pressure on the surge brake actuator and master cylinder. This could also be applying pressure to the ball/hitch and making it more difficult to remove. After backing into the garage, allowing the truck to roll an inch or so forward may pull the tongue back out and remove this pressure. I think this is true especially if you have the electronic solenoid lockout. The solenoid allows the fluid to flow back into the res, but the actuator is still compressed and applying slight pressure forward.